On Thursday, US Ambassador Anne Sacoolas will testify in court on Harry Dunn’s death.
The Westminster Magistrates’ Court hearing, which was scheduled to take place earlier, was postponed to make room for “ongoing” discussions with the US suspect.
Following a tragic car accident in Northamptonshire in August 2019, Sacoolas is charged with causing death by careless driving. The incident happened outside the RAF Croughton US military post.
The Crown Prosecution Service announced the court date today in a statement, adding: “A hearing has been set for September 29 at Westminster Magistrates’ Court.
We remind everyone that Mrs. Sacoolas has a right to a fair trial and that there shouldn’t be any internet reporting, discussion, or information sharing that might in any way harm the outcome of any proceedings.
Following the crash, the US government sought diplomatic immunity on the suspect’s behalf, enabling her to depart the UK 19 days later.
The CPS said in December that it was still “dedicated to obtaining justice in this situation.”
Legal counsel for Sacoolas responded to that assertion by saying, “While we have always been open to consider a virtual hearing, there is no agreement at this moment.”
Sacoolas was charged with death by hazardous driving, and the Home Office requested her extradition; however, in January 2020, the US State Department denied the request.
The Dunn family was subsequently informed that although no criminal procedures could be brought against Sacoolas in the US, they could still sue her for damages in their native country since her immunity had expired when she left.
Sacoolas and her husband Jonathan’s attorneys made an effort to have the lawsuit dismissed on the grounds that it should be tried in the UK.
Sacoolas’s arguments that the UK was a “more convenient” venue were rejected by Judge Thomas Ellis, who decided to retain the case in Virginia. He called the move “not merited.”
Then, as part of the “discovery” process, Harry’s parents went over to the US to provide testimony under oath.